Ripetizioni di AnalisiPrecalculusUnlockedITSearch

Worked examples · Sheet 3

Rationalizations

Theory used: RationalizationProperties of roots

Go to: Exercise 1Exercise 2Exercise 3

Exercise 1

Rationalize

Before rationalizing it is convenient to simplify the root: , therefore and the fraction reduces to .

The denominator is a single root, therefore numerator and denominator are multiplied by : the product equals , hence the denominator becomes rational. The factor cancels between numerator and denominator and remains.

Exercise 2

Rationalize

The denominator is a binomial with square roots, therefore numerator and denominator are multiplied by the conjugate binomial . The product of a difference and the corresponding sum is the difference of the squares, hence the squares of the roots appear in the denominator: , a rational number.

The factor in the denominator cancels with the in the numerator, therefore the result is .

Exercise 3

Rationalize

The radicand is written as a power: . With a cube root in the denominator, the multiplying factor is the one that completes the cube under the root: since , numerator and denominator are multiplied by .

The product of cube roots is the cube root of the product, therefore the denominator becomes , a rational number. The fraction simplifies to and the result is .

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